Chapter 7
More than ten days later,
The golden energy cocoon slowly cracked open. Yang Jian opened his eyes.
His pupils flowed with blazing golden light, like two miniature stars burning inside.
He stretched lightly. The surrounding solar plasma parted automatically, as if submitting to his will.
"System, open the panel."
Ding! Silver Superman template update complete.
[Host: Yang Jian] [Cellular Strength: 100% (has broken through previous limits and continues growing)] [Super Strength: Can casually tow planetary-mass objects → Can now shake stellar-mass bodies] [Super Speed: Lightspeed → Faster-than-light (capable of short-range spatial jumps)] [Man of Steel: Immune to most physical damage → Can withstand supernova-level impacts] [Heat Vision, Super Vision, Super Hearing… (and so on)] …
Yang Jian clenched his fist, feeling the surging energy within.
If his previous power had still been confined to standard Superman levels, now he was clearly evolving toward a higher tier.
"Not bad. Time to head back."
With a flash, he broke free of the sun's gravitational pull, turning into a streak of golden light hurtling toward Earth.
Near Earth Orbit
Yang Jian abruptly decelerated, hovering in space. His gaze locked onto a metallic structure drifting in orbit.
"Kree Empire monitoring station?" He narrowed his eyes.
The station seemed to detect him. Turrets swiveled, energy cannons charging—clearly marking him as a threat.
Yang Jian's expression remained blank. His eyes flashed red.
BOOM!
Twin beams of searing heat vision pierced the station, reducing it to cosmic dust in an instant.
"Earth isn't your playground," he said coolly, then continued his descent toward the planet.
New York – Above Hell's Kitchen
The moment he entered the atmosphere, super hearing flooded him with chaos: explosions, screams, the screech of twisting metal.
He looked down. Hell's Kitchen. His brow furrowed instantly.
The Hulk was rampaging!
The Green Goliath roared, smashing through a building wall with one fist. Debris flew everywhere.
Iron Man circled overhead, repulsors firing steady blasts, trying to draw his attention.
"Hey! Easy there!"
Tony's voice boomed from the suit's speakers, but Hulk ignored him completely. He grabbed a car and hurled it.
Bang!
Iron Man dodged too late—slammed backward, crashing through a building facade.
Nearby, Spider-Man swung in on a web-line and landed. Before he could speak, Hulk backhanded him.
Peter flew like a ragdoll, slamming into a truck and staying down.
Yang Jian couldn't help but chuckle. "Tsk. This won't do."
His own skyscraper sat right in Hell's Kitchen. If Hulk kept going, his territory would take collateral damage.
Whoosh!
In the next instant, he dove straight down, hovering silently in front of the Hulk.
"Hey, big guy. Hell's Kitchen is closed today."
Hulk whipped his head up, eyes locking on Yang Jian. Hot breath steamed from his nostrils.
"HULK… SMASH!!!"
He didn't wait for a reply. A massive fist rocketed forward with a sonic boom aimed at Yang Jian's face!
"You asked for it."
Yang Jian sighed, not dodging. He simply raised one hand.
BOOM!!!
Fist met palm. The shockwave detonated outward—cracking the street for hundreds of meters, shattering every window in sight.
Yang Jian was mildly surprised. That punch definitely exceeded a hundred tons. And this Hulk clearly matched the movie version—explaining why Spider-Man got swatted so easily. Something was off about this rampage.
Hulk froze.
His fist… had been caught one-handed.
And Yang Jian hadn't even budged.
"Done playing?" Yang Jian asked calmly.
Hulk roared in fury and swung his other fist.
Yang Jian blurred forward—reappearing instantly in front of him—and drove a single punch into Hulk's abdomen.
BOOM!!!
Air exploded. The massive green body folded like paper.
Hulk's eyes rolled back. He flew backward, smashing through several buildings before crashing limp to the ground—out cold.
Silence fell over the street.
Civilians who'd been fleeing froze in place.
In a military helicopter overhead, the pilot's jaw dropped. He forgot to mute the radio: "Holy shit!"
Iron Man crawled from the rubble, armor heavily damaged. JARVIS chimed: "Sir, armor integrity at 13%. Recommend immediate retreat."
Tony ignored it, staring blankly at the black-suited figure hovering above.
He hadn't clearly seen the face—JARVIS couldn't pierce whatever field surrounded the man.
"This guy… one-punched the Hulk?!"
Yang Jian scanned the area, confirmed Hulk was unconscious, then vanished in a flash.
Leaving behind a devastated battlefield and dozens of stunned onlookers.
S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters
Nick Fury stared at the footage on the screen. His single eye narrowed. Though Yang Jian's image was blurry, they knew exactly who it was.
"One punch. Hulk down."
Coulson stood beside him, face grim. "Director, we need to upgrade his threat assessment."
Fury was silent for a long moment, then spoke slowly.
"No. First we need to figure out if he's an enemy… or something else."
Hell's Kitchen – Yang International Tower Top-floor Office
Yang Jian materialized silently at the floor-to-ceiling window. The black Kryptonian armor retracted, revealing a sharp black suit underneath.
Hands in pockets, he overlooked the still-chaotic streets below.
Military and S.H.I.E.L.D. agents were cleaning up Hulk's mess. Sirens wailed in the distance.
"Quite the party."
He chuckled softly, walked to the bar, and poured himself a whiskey.
Before he could take a sip, the office door burst open.
Bullseye rushed in, eyes carrying rare urgency.
"Boss! You're back!"
Yang Jian raised an eyebrow, taking a slow sip. "And?"
Bullseye's mouth twitched, but he quickly composed himself and reported rapidly.
"During the time you were gone, things got messy. Coulson and his S.H.I.E.L.D. team hovered around for days. I warned them off—they pulled back temporarily, but they're definitely still watching. Norman Osborn sent people to approach several Yang International executives—probably digging for intel on you. After Kingpin's death, rival gangs got bold. A few idiots tried to move in on Hell's Kitchen turf. I handled them. The biggest headache: Hulk's rampage caused major damage to our properties. Intel says Banner was hiding well underground here, but the military somehow pinpointed him. General Ross sent a spec-ops team to apprehend—used sonic weapons to force the transformation. That's why Hulk came out swinging."
Bullseye finished in one breath, waiting.
"So that little circus just now was Ross's doing?" Yang Jian scoffed.
"That old bastard still won't quit."
Bullseye nodded. "Banner was holed up in a basement safehouse in Hell's Kitchen. Military rolled in with acoustic weapons—pushed him over the edge."
Yang Jian narrowed his eyes. Super hearing expanded instantly, locking onto a military convoy blocks away.
General Ross sat in the command vehicle, face thunderous—clearly furious at S.H.I.E.L.D.'s interference.
"Boss, should I pay Ross a visit?" A cold glint flashed in Bullseye's eyes.
Yang Jian waved him off. "Not yet. Let S.H.I.E.L.D. and the military tear each other apart first."
---------------------------
Support me and be 20 chapters ahead of webnovel:
patreon.com/arthursink
WELCOME OFFER – 30% OFF ON ALL TIERS!
Use promo code: CD787Valid from February 23 to February 28 only.